Witnesses React To Venice Beach Lightning Strike

VENICE (CBSLA.com) — Witnesses to the Sunday afternoon lightning strike that killed a man, and injured at least nine people on the boardwalk at Venice Beach, said the clap of thunder that came along with it sounded like “a bomb going off” or an airplane crash.

Greg Mills spoke to people on the beach shortly after the lightning strike, including one man who was getting ready to go paddle boarding when the storm hit.

“We got zapped,” the man said. “It felt like a lot of heat on the the head, and a bit of pressure on the head, and eyes blurry a little bit.”

“The freakiest part about it was it was clear blue sky overhead,” said another witness, Ned Walker. “The storm clouds were kind of down further south. So it was like at the tip of the storm and that’s why none of the lifeguards had pulled anyone from the water or anything like that.”

Walker said that shortly after the lightning strike he saw lifeguards rescue a surfer, who they then tried to revive.